Drury students do research, provide rain boots to needy children on study-abroad trip

Associate professor Teresa Carroll with a Roatan child.

A study-abroad trip to Honduras over winter break might conjure up thoughts of sightseeing, writing in journals and lying on the beach, but that wasn't the case for Teresa Carroll's "Field Studies in Marine Biology" class.

In January, 13 students traveled with Carroll, an associate professor of biology at Drury, to Roatan, an island off the coast of Honduras. The students did research that would be used at the Roatan Institute for Marine Science.

A typical day went like this:

7 a.m. - Breakfast

8 a.m. - Pre-dive meeting

9 a.m. - Scuba dive to collect samples and identify wildlife

11:30 a.m. - Lunch

1 p.m. - Another dive to collect data

4 p.m. - Enter data

6 p.m. - Dinner

"I told Dr. Carroll that she had a good plan to wear all of us out during the day with our research so we couldn't get into any trouble at night," said Alex Drobnic, a junior biology major who went on the trip.

The students had to be pre-certified to scuba dive before going on the trip, and they had to have taken "Introduction to Marine Biology and Zoology."

Prior to going on the trip, the students also picked up a side project that was less about the students' brains and more about their hearts.

Carroll has taken students to Roatan before. During those trips she became familiar with SOL International Foundation, which works with local youths to promote education and quality of life.

On her visit in 2011, she asked officials with SOL International what the youths of Roatan needed. The answer was rain boots. During the rainy season, sewage mixes with the rain and mud to form a parasitic soup that children have to walk through, which often leads to severe illnesses.

Last fall, Carroll and her students made T-shirts with the slogan "Rainboots for Roatan" and sold them for $10 each, and they solicited donations.

The students raised nearly $3,000. The Drury students distributed rain boots to more than 100 children. There was enough money left over to buy cartoon character backpacks stuffed with school supplies for the children, too.

"When we left, there were 14 people on an amazing high," Carroll said. "Just the thought that we had helped these little kids, the love we shared was unbelievable."

Carroll plans to raise more money to buy more boots for Roatan children. If you would like to make a donation, contact tcarroll@drury.edu.